Through Shadows to the Edge of Night
by Frodo eats fridos
Summary: If you love Twilight and Eragon then you will love this mix. Durza has a son and his name is Kobal, a beautiful shade. He falls in love with a creature he despises. An Elf. But he cannot help his love for her and she to him. Star crossed lovers perhaps?
1. The Thing that Changed Me Forever

I respected my father and thought of him as a good man. He did what he was told without any hesitation and beyond that he was powerful. I followed everything he said until he had captured an elf, the most beautiful lady a man could ever lay his eyes on. I tried not to love her, I truly did but her presence would not allow me to. So I was helplessly drawn to her and she to I. I have tried many times for her to not do this to me to love me, this perfect monster, a shade. But she simply could not do so and, truthfully, I did not want her to either. She completely changed my life in good ways and bad. The good ways I shall never forget, yet the bad ways I shall never forgive. Going against my father was the worst thing I could do, but the best thing that has ever happened to me. I am Kobal, Durza's son, and this is my life story which you would either loath or find it most remarkable. To me, it does not matter what you think of it. I lived it and that is that.

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"Kobal! Get up! Another visitor has joined Gil'ead and it is time that we greet them with our unwanted gratitude. Come now!" I heard my father yell in my room and loudly shut the door. A new visitor or prisoner I should say is the best time of the week; whenever a new prisoner has come it is like a new toy for a young kitten.

"Coming, I'll be right out!" I quickly lit all the candles in my room chanting Brisingr to each candle. When the room was finally well lit I took a good look at my dark room. Yes, it was still a pretty dark room with all the candles being lit, but when your father runs Gil'ead you will not find a bright room anywhere. I looked out the window to see it was still dark out. Must be still early morning, but no matter a new prisoner was something to wake up for.

I headed over to my mirror to scrutinize myself. Well I sure stood out in the room. If I blew out all my candles my pale white skin would still be seen. I guess you can say I am almost translucent. I ran my hand through my blood colored hair, feeling each hair run through my cold fingers. Unlike my father's hair, which was long and free flowing, mine was short, disheveled, and stuck up in all different directions. I had some wild hair but not in any way to make me look bad. In fact I was told I was beautiful by many people, but to me? I really don't care, I just think I am a standard shade, but I guess we are known to have beauty in our blood. I stared at myself one more time taking a good look at my crimson eyes, which glared back at me. I could not wait any longer! I quickly stepped out of the mirror and walked violently down the hall.

So much adrenaline was in me that I felt like I flew down the prison cell, but that's just another way of saying how fast I ran. My father was standing there with the door open for the prisoner and he greeted me with reaching his cold hands in the back of my neck. He smiled and said,

"Another one, Kobal." I did not know what he was talking about but this was another way of getting me excited; by not telling me right away.

"Another what?" My father smiled, that evil smile of his that I have inherited,

"Another elf, son." Another elf! How I hated elves, every elf deserved to be here in Gil'ead or better, dead. They think that they are so damn superior well this elf has got it coming!

"And you will like this, my son. I am leaving you in charge of her, so you may torture however you wish. I know you will do a good job with that." Another female? Well I was hoping for a male they are less brittle and would live longer than a fragile female, but no matter, she was an elf.

"I will be proud to do so, father." Durza smiled,

"Good, good. I have to be in charge of Arya, she is a strong one." Arya! Oh the hatred that I have for her could go on and on! Everyone says that she is a beauty but yet I do not see it. I have seen humans prettier than the dim-witted elf!

"So father, what is this elf's crime?" My father laughed deep in his throat and said,

"A friend of Arya's trying to help her escape! Ha! It was quite a failure, Kobal." I laughed along with him. You may think it is not too funny but let me tell you, you must be some fool to try to escape or help someone else escape. Does not matter if you are an elf or not, you will fail.

"When is she coming?" Durza looked angry and said,

"Well I told the guards to tie her up a few minutes ago upstairs so they should…" And just in perfect timing the two mighty soldiers were dragging down the struggling elf. I chuckled at this sight. She had pale skin like mine, but it was not as pallid. She wore dark leathered pants with a white tunic and a brown leather vest. This was the attire that female elves wore when they were on the run. Her dark brown, almost black hair was down in her face. Even though I could not see her face she looked pretty I will give her that.

"Show your pretty young face to Kobal. He will be accompanying you to your prospected death." I liked the way my father put that sentence together, it made me laugh. When she did not do what my father had commanded he tugged her hair and pulled back her head to reveal her face. My laughter was gone and in fact all my senses were gone. I could not hear or feel anything I just focused my red eyes on her brown ones. I don't know what to tell you of how beautiful she was to mine eyes, but I can say I have never seen anything as beautiful as her. I then forgot why my father had captured this beauty of a lady, but then I saw her ears and I remembered.

Her eyes looked sorrowfully at mine but her action was not so. She spat on my boot! That wretched elf! Instinctively, I smacked her with the back of my hand convening her soft cheek into my cold knuckles. She quietly yelped in pain as my father laughed but somehow I was unable to. What was wrong with me? I hated elves! How can this be different? I did not feel strong or mighty when I hit her, instead I felt weak and empty. This is not what I usually feel when I hit an elf or anyone for that matter. How could she, this elf, Arya's ally, be any different? I wanted to touch her reddened cheek and apologize … Wait, what? How could I be saying this, or a better word, thinking this? I am Kobal, and I am no hopeless man who feels sorry for an elf. I am a shade.

"Guards! Lead her into her new home or hell, whichever works for you… What is your name?" My father said to the elf. All she did was glare those dark eyes at him signaling him that she was not going to tell him. My father never really cares for names anyway.

"Right then. Guards, as you were," My father said as he walked down the hall and I followed closely behind. My father looked at me in the corner of his eye and then turned around,

"What are you doing following me around? You should be getting answers from that elf, start off with her name." I did not want to go back to her. I did not want to face the same feelings I faced before they were… grotesque! I did not want to feel sorry for her, but I did what my father told me and walked slowly down the hall dreading each step. One of the guards tossed me the key to her prison and said in a raspy voice,

"Your in charge of her, am I correct?" I nodded blankly. The guard just nodded in agreement and headed back down the hall with the other guard. Now all I heard were muffled cries from that elf. Great! I made her cry so now I have to deal with her howling away giving me a blasted headache, but I must do what my father told me. I put the key in the hole and jostled it a bit until it opened. As it creaked, I heard her cleaning up her tears and taking deep breaths to calm herself down, but I was no fool I heard her crying. She was in the corner with her back faced to me and her ankle chained up to the stonewall. I did not know what to say, really what was I to say? I decided to go with,

"There is no reason for you to be crying. You got yourself into this." She dared to talk back,

"Please, don't." Her voice was sweet, I mean it was… ugh who am kidding? Her voice was such a sweet enchantment my ears. Oh why am thinking such things it … it felt good. Oh no. I quickly snapped out of it and thought of what she said_. Please, don't_. Hm, was she trying to command me? Oh well that just won't do. I stalked over to her and crouched down to get eye level with her but her face was still fixed to the wall.

"Excuse me? Are you trying to tell me what to do? That does not work here. This time you are not the superior one." It looked as though her eyes were watering again. She did not say anything so I guess this is the part where I start demanding some answers as to who she is. My voice was calm yet prevailing as I said,

"What is your name?" She closed her eyes and tears slowly fell down her cheek but there was still no answer. Daring this one, telling me what to do and not answering my questions, but I will not have it.

"Tell me your name." I said a bit louder but all she did to respond was to stare straight at the wall as tears peacefully ran down her flawless face. Is she deaf? Impossible, elves could never be deaf. I was getting frustrated with her and I would not accept that. I grabbed her chin and jerked it toward my face as I was about to yell at her. But I could not, all of the anger was out of me. And I could see that she was drained from her sadness as well. I'm guessing she was hypnotized by my red eyes, but who isn't? Her eyes were mesmerizing as well and they were just brown, but I felt lost within them. My grip on her became relaxed and my thumb caressed over her marked cheek. I was surprised she had not pulled away from me. _I'm_ surprised I had not pulled myself away. But I could not help it. My thumb then began to wipe her tears off of her face, feeling the warm tears against my cold thumb was something I have not experienced for I have never cried. And it was something to be called sensational. I decided to ask her one more time now that I have locked her in my charm and I in hers,

"Please, your name?" My voice was gentle almost a whisper and it sounded unfamiliar to me. But it worked. Her eyes were soft and wondering as she matched my voice level and said in that lullaby of a voice,

"Aranel."

**A/N: I hoped you liked the first chapter, and if you did please review. If you are one of my readers who have read my other story you will know how much I love reviews so please be so kind to do so. Now let me tell you about my updating back round. It varies. There may be times when I put out three chapters in one week. There may be times when I put up one chapter once every two months. I try to update as quick as I can while maintaining my busy schedule so please stay with me if I do not update fast. For now my rule will try to be a chapter every week and on holiday vacations twice a week. Alright, that is all for now and thanks for reading but do not forget to review!**


	2. My Weakness Is My Fear

"Aranel is her name, father." Aranel. I really do not think a name can get any more beautiful than that. My father smiled and said,

"Any more information?" I shook my head, after that I left her alone. I needed to get away from her. Although I found her most remarkable and the prettiest living thing on this earth, it scared me. I am not used to feeling this way especially towards an elf. God! An elf! Can you imagine?

"No, she will not give me any more. But I am sure I can get a few more answers out of her when I bring her lunch." Durza smiled and said,

"Do not forget the poison." The poison was just something we put in their foods, so they forget things like spells and such. It helps with getting answers out of the prisoner as well.

"I will not forget. Anything else you need for me to do?" Durza shook his head and smiled,

"No, that is all. You may reside until lunch." I turned away. I get a break, alright! But in an instant my father was in front of me. I hate it when he does that appear and then disappear thing right in front of me.

"Kobal, make sure we get some more answers from her, yes? I do not care if you have to beat it out of her, in fact, that is what I want you to do. I do not want you to be spellbound by her beauty, do I make myself clear?" Maybe that's what it was! Just hypnotized by her beauty, that's all. Nothing else. Good.

"Father, do not be ridiculous! She's an elf, how can I have any affection for her?" My father smiled, and that's a good sign,

"That's my boy! Alright you are free, until lunch. Spend your time wisely." Then he vanished. Man, I wish can do that as frequently as he can. But he says I am too young to vanish in and out like it was as simple as walking, so I do it in only emergencies. I walked back to my room and plopped on my bed, maybe I could recover some sleep. But the awakening sun would not allow me to do so. The sun, another thing I am not too fond of. Even if the sun was not present I would still not capture any sleep. And it was all because of her, Aranel. I don't get it, I just don't. How can a shade like me be so weak around a pathetic elf like her? But no she was not pathetic, she was … Oh, I really do need sleep don't I? So I rested my head against my pillow and had the most uncomfortable nap in my life. I woke up every ten minutes and thought; is it time yet? Time for lunch? Why was I so excited for lunch? I would have to poison her and I don't want to do that… wait, yes I do, don't I?

When the time finally came for lunch to be served I jumped out of my bed and ran down to where we poison the food. I wish I could vanish and appear like my father for it was a long way. But do not think I got tired! I can run for days without getting tired, it is just aggravating going down stairs to the kitchen while my father can just appear there. When I finally got down there only a few soldiers were in there preparing food. I was late? Maybe I did get some sleep. No matter, I went over to the end of the table and got a loaf of bread, four pieces of cheese and a mug of water. I took the knife of the table and split the bread in half so I could position the poison in properly. I went to a different counter and went to one of the many flasks lined up on the shelf. I brought it over to the bread and opened the flask. As I was about to drop the poison in I stopped.

I could not continue, no matter how hard I pushed myself to my hand remained frozen. Now I can't pour a simple drop of poison? I knew I would have to deal with this confrontation with myself. I thought of what my father would do if I had not poisoned her, but I just did not want to hurt her again. There! I said it, call me pathetic all you want, but, and I do not know why, her pain does not please me. My hand melted out of it's frozen position as I placed the flask on the table. It echoed through out the vacant room and that's when I realized I was alone. For some odd reason I did not want to be alone, this was probably one of the first times I felt that way. I quickly grabbed the tray of food and went somewhere I would not be alone.

I walked swiftly down the hall without a single water drop in the mug out of place. As I reached her cell I quickly reached for the key which was in my pocket. After putting the key in the lock the door opened and I saw her. She was lying on her back with her dark hair sprawled out like a fan on the floor. Her eyes darted to mine and I was speechless. She gathered herself and went into a tight ball against the wall sitting up right. I walked in slowly and placed the tray of food on the ground by her feet. She did not move so I told her,

"You should eat. I bet your starving." She quickly shook her head and said,

"I am not eating that. It is poisoned." Now isn't she smart, but what she does not know is that I did not poison it.

"It's not I swear. Eat it." I demanded, but she still did not move a muscle except her mouth which formed the words,

"I don't trust you." I chuckled out,

"Well I don't blame you. I wouldn't trust me either." She lifted the corner of her mouth slightly yet quickly showing a nippy smirk but still made know effort for the food. I guess I needed to teach her to eat. I grunted and sat down on the floor and said,

"Alright, alright. Here I will prove to you that it is not poisoned," I grabbed the bread and bit a chunk out of it, I bit off some cheese, and took a sip of water to prove that nothing was poisoned.

"There, trust me now?" She still did not move as she said,

"Barely." I threw my hands in the air at my unbelief of her.

"I do not know what else to show you that this is not poisoned. I know you are starving so just eat." She said back to me,

"What does it matter to you if I am starving or not?" She got me there. I could not tell her that I did care. She was so damn pesky about this.

"You are right, I don't care. Starve and die for all I care!" She slightly smiled, so I guess that was good? I don't know, I just knew that I had to get down the questions for her to answer. As I was about to ask her something she reached for the bread and nibbled on it. I smiled and said,

"Trusting me a bit more, yes?" She swallowed the bread down before she said with speculating eyes,

"Why is it that you are being nice to a prisoner like me?" I was hoping that question would not come. What do I say? I decided to dodge the question and say,

"I am the one to be asking the questions here. So you eat and not say a word. Do I make myself clear?" She looked down and nodded. I closed my eyes and sighed then opened them again. I always say the same questions over and over again to prisoners. My job was to ask questions and when they refused it was my father's job to beat them until they bled the answer. But not this time she was all mine. I mean mine in a prisoner sort of way, oh you know what I mean!

"How old are you?" She seemed to give in easily I thought I would have to use my charm again.

"Twenty." Twenty? Well that was much younger than I had expected! I thought she was around Arya's age which is what, a hundred? No wonder she is so vulnerable and prudent. She was, in fact, younger than me by two years! I continued,

"Where did you come from, well that's a given. Ellesmera, yes?" She nodded her head slowly. Ellesmera was disgusting, I'm glad that we are warded off from that wretched place. I think I might have to kill myself if I ever had to go in there. Now we had passed the simple questions, it was now time for the questions to get in her face about. I came closer to her, smelling whatever erotic perfume was on her. And even though I was inches away from her face, she was still eating the damn bread! This angered me. I ripped the bread from her hands and through it across the cell as I cornered her and saw the fear in her eyes starting to sink in.

"Now, tell me, Aranel, where has Arya has taken the egg that she has so daringly to steal." My voice was harsh yet calm, but she did not respond. She looked speechless, I would be too if I were in her position. Intimidating her more, I moved my face closer to hers so my nose was almost touching hers. Through my gritted teeth I said,

"You do not want to get yourself into this. Tell me, Aranel." She quickly shook her head. I had no time for this nonsense! I grabbed her by the shoulder tightly and raised my right hand as I was about to smack her, but somehow she managed to reach her hands over her face and cry out,

"No! Please, Kobal, don't hurt me! I honestly don't know where she brought the egg!" She said my name. She actually said it. That made me feel like we knew each other and I liked it. My hand suspended in the air and I faced the same dilemma I did in the kitchen. Hit her or put the hand down? I must have had my hand in the air for about a minute breathing heavily down in her face as I began to quarrel with myself. I finally came to my conclusion. I slowly put my hand down as I said in my soft voice, which I use to convince her with,

"I'm…. I'm not going to hurt you." My hand wanted to come upon her face again and I just could not help it. I wanted to feel her soft face along with her warm tears. I brushed my fingers through her silky hair and repeated what I said but even softer, a whisper,

"I won't hurt you, I promise." She finally took her hands out of her face and it was wet with newly formed tears. Right when I saw her face my hand automatically touched it softly. I felt those warm tears again and I flashed a smile and said,

"Your tears, they're so warm." She smiled a bit back and said,

"As they should be." Well I never knew this so I told her the reason why,

"I have never cried before." Her smile faded away. Oh no what did I do now?

"I'm sorry did I say something?" She looked at me with her eyes that drew me even closer to her. She did not even jerk back when our noses almost touched, she remained still but her mouth moved as she said,

"You never answered my question before." In curiosity I asked as I breathed my cool breath on her,

"And what's that?" She looked down at her hands then locked her gaze back in mine as she said,

"Why are acting so kind towards me?" I went numb. My face froze in place showing no emotion. Why was I acting kind towards her? I could not answer that question for I did not even know the answer. I finally moved my hand off her face and stood up with much stiffness in my back. I honestly did not want to leave her this early, but I had no other choice. My posture was extremely straight as I walked out of the room. I wish I did not see the pain on her face, but I did. She looked like she was about to cry and I wanted to be there and hold her to tell her that I was there for her. I still cannot believe I am thinking these things. I locked the door and dreaded dinner time. You might think it was a selfish thing for me to do, but I simply could not answer that question.


	3. Awakening the Monster

I did not talk to her at dinner time. I knew I should have asked her more questions but I could not. I just went in her cell, bit out a sample of her dinner to prove it was not poisoned, then I left. After that I went right to bed and strangely I fell asleep pretty fast. I woke up and my father was there waiting for me to get up.

"Father?" He smiled and came closer and said in a low voice,

"Kobal, did you get any more information from that elf?" Only a few, damn! This was not going to make him happy,

"Yes, her age and where she resides, that's all." My father's smile went away. Oh great.

"That's all? Did you find out where the egg was?" I shook my head and said,

"She did not know." He laughed but I was not sure if this was good or bad,

"Well, Kobal, let me tell you we do not need to worry about that question anymore!" Wait, what? We still have a chance we can find it!

"What are you talking about? It's still out there we can find …"

"No, we cannot. Do you know why? Because it has hatched, Kobal! To a young farm boy named Eragon! A boy!" It hatched? How could it happen, and to a mere farm boy? What has the world come to?

"And, Kobal, I must ask you, you beat her yes? And you still did not get the answer from her?" Well I could not tell him what really happened so I said,

"Yes, but not so much, her mouth was already filled with so much blood that I could not understand her!" I thought my father would laugh at this but his face was apathetic.

"Well that's funny because when I visited her last night, after dinner, she had no mark on her what so ever. Strange, don't you think?" He visited her last night? No, that means he hurt her!

"Yes, very strange." He glared at me and appeared inches away from my face as he said,

"Kobal, I know you are not doing your job. You are a shade! You do not shed any mercy! Do you understand? I do not want anymore of this nonsense!" He was right. I am a shade and I am strong I should not be doing this. It is not natural.

"I understand, father. My foolish actions will not come by again. I promise," I lied. I am a lying fool. I knew that I couldn't do what my father does, especially to Aranel. If it were Arya then I would not have a problem.

"Good, now it is breakfast time." My father walked to the door and opened it but stopped there and turned to me,

"And, Kobal? She knew where the egg was." My father slammed the door shut. So she was a liar too? Well now aren't we both liars. I got out of bed and dressed quickly then made my way to the kitchen. I do not know what I was going to do. He expects me to beat her whenever she does not answer my questions and I am just not able to. A part of me wants to hate her and beat her until she dies, but that cannot simply happen. You do not know what I was going through, truly you don't.

As I entered the cell I put the empoisoned food on the ground. She was facing the wall again like the first time I entered the cell.

"Aranel? I brought you your food. Do you need me to eat it a bit?" I saw her nod her head slowly. I did so and moved the tray closer to her. She did not even look at me as she reached for the bread, but I saw something that disturbed me. Her arm was covered with scratches that were deep and crimson. I saw blood drip stains wrapped around her arm and dyed the end of her sleeve with the ruby color of her blood. I knew this was my father's doing. I kneeled down close beside her and said in a dreary voice,

"What did my father do to you?" She hid herself from me and said nothing. I already knew she had the scars on her arm so she could not hide that from me, but I was afraid to see what else happened to her.

"Aranel, please, I will not hurt you and you know that. Just let me see." I reached my hand for her chin and as I touched her she winced, but did not pull back. I lightly led her chin to my view and saw something that I wished I did not see. To the corner of her eye from the bottom of her chin was a thin yet profound cut. How I hated my father to disturb her beauty with this unsightly scar upon her soft face. She finally said something,

"I tried to heal it, but I am guessing that my magic does not work here?" I nodded blankly. I did not want to see her like this, my magic worked here. I could heal her. I put my hand close to her swollen cheek but she jerked back and said,

"What are you doing?" Why was she resisting this?

"I am going to heal you." She put her soft hand on mine and took it off of her cheek and said,

"Kobal, you cannot do this. It will not only get me in trouble but you as well." I shook my head,

"I do not care if I get in trouble. I want you out of this pain." I tried to free my hand from hers but she would not allow it.

"Kobal, please do not waste your energy on me." I was confused. Wasn't she hurt?

"Don't you want to be out of this pain?" She shook her head and said,

"Not if it means it will cost us both." I clenched my jaw tight and held a hard gaze on her. She was right though; she was the smart one. But I did not like it. I leaned my back against the wall along with my head and sighed. I wanted to heal her and I wanted to use my energy on her. Aranel broke the silence and said,

"I must thank you, though, for attempting to heal me." I smiled to myself and said,

"Don't mention it. Seriously, don't." I heard her give a quiet giggle then silence joined us yet again. She knew that I was uncomfortable with her hurt, but yet she still would not budge to let me heal her.

"Why are you not like your father?" I became a little offended. Did she think I was not strong enough? I shot my scarlet eyes at her face and said,

"What do you mean?" She became nervous at my glare; I could feel it. She tried to avoid my eyes but they were so captivating she could not dodge away. She said in a tense voice,

"Well, you are much nicer to me than he obviously is. And I just want to know why I have not bled under your wrath, but your fathers?" I narrowed my eyes at her. Did she want me to be like my father?

"So what you are saying is that you want me to be like my father? You want me to cause pain to you?" She shook her head quickly and said,

"No, not at all it's just that you are a shade and…"

"And I am supposed to be what? Vile? Heartless? Vindictive? Is that what you think that is all to a shade?" She backed into the corner and said,

"No, I just never expected you to be kind." I got up and stared her down. My voice got louder as I said,

"Because we are monsters, yes? Is that what they are teaching at Ellesmera these days?" Tears were starting to fill her eyes and her voice grew as well,

"Well its hard not to think that you are not monsters! You captured Arya and me and probably many other people for a foolish reason! And with what your father has done to me how can I not think of you as a monster?" I had my back to her the whole time so she would not see my bared teeth, but now she was asking for it. I turned around and I saw her eyes grow with fear. I said in my threatening voice as I stepped closer,

"So you think of me as a monster? After all I have done for you, you still consider me a monster? Well maybe I should start acting like a monster, but then I would not be a considered a monster then would I? I would more likely be a demon! Is that what you want? Is it?" Tears poured from her eyes as she said,

"Stop! Please stop! I did not mean it like that!" I crouched down still baring my white teeth at her and yelled at her,

"Then what am I?" She was speechless; she was completely shocked. I got right in her face and repeated,

"What am I?" She did not say anything. I have never been so angry at her before and could not help to unleash the monster she was so daringly to wake up. I wound up my hand and without hesitation smacked her across her good cheek. She squealed quietly and after that wept into somber sobs. I did not want to do that, but I did and even though my temper had erupted I was not pleased how I dealt with things. I sat down with my back to her unhappy with myself. This was an emotion that I should be crying about but nothing came out of my eyes. I felt empty, without warm tears on my face. I know you are probably thinking that crying is not that great but when you do not have it you cannot experience a real emotion. It was quiet except Aranel's soft cries and it did not please me.

"I'm sorry." I said softly. She did not respond so I continued to talk,

"I don't know why I did that. It's just… It is different. I am a monster to other people but not to you, and I still do not know why. But when you called me a monster it made me feel… angry because I'm not one towards you. Just because I look like one and I am the son of Durza does not mean I am a monster. I have feelings. I am not always a sly, loathsome shade. And when you call me things that I am not to you… it hurts me. You just assume it because I am a shade. But believe it or not we are not apathetic, and I am definitely not apathetic towards you." Her cries stopped and I heard her chain around her ankle move closer to me. Then I heard her lips by my ear as she said,

"If you are not apathetic then what are feelings toward me?" Oh no! Not this question again! But this time a felt I could answer it, for some reason I could answer it. There was nothing clogged in my throat, no stiffness in my back as I said,

"I… I feel very protective of you. I don't like it when I see you hurt, unlike other people it does not satisfy me. When I hurt you it makes me feel even worse; a monster as you would like to call it. And whenever I am near you I forget about what my father tells me. He tells me to shed no mercy, but I cannot bear to hurt you. I guess I care very much for you. That's not very apathetic now is it?" She was quiet for a moment then said softly,

"No it is not apathetic at all." I turned my face as my body followed and said,

"Then why do you think such things? Why do you think I am dead inside?" Her face was solemn when she said,

"You are right, Kobal. It is because what I have been taught at Ellesmera, or Arya. They say that shades are sorcerers that possess dark magic and that is true. They also say that the only way to make them happy is to see the pain and torture of another being. But I have learned that the last statement is false, and I thank you for correcting me." I shook my head and said,

"But I corrected you the wrong way. I should not be thanked for that." She smiled slightly and said,

"Sometimes that is what has to be done when someone will not listen." I still was not convinced that I did the right thing. I looked down away from her gaze and sat there in silence against the wall. She then said out of random,

"You know you are very cold to touch." I smirked and looked up to her and flashed my teeth at her saying,

"Does that bother you?" She shook her head and said,

"No, but doesn't it bother you?" That question was a hard one. I loved being cold. I loved the cold weather yet I have never been warm.

"I guess it does a bit. I mean I have always been cold my skin has never changed its temperature. That is something else about us shades. We are cold… But I do not hate being cold, it's just that I have never felt warmth from another being only their blood upon my hands, but that is not the same." She shook her head slowly and said,

"No it is not." Talking about it made me want me to experience it even more like right now. So I asked her as I went on my knees closer to her,

"Don't move." I could see that she got a little worried but I smiled again and said,

"I will not hurt you this time or ever again." She nodded and remained still. I moved my hands to her waist and wrapped them around the small of her back. She followed quickly as she moved her hands around my neck. She nestled her head into my neck as a whole rush of heat went through my body. It was incredible. I know that I have experienced heat before but that was from the blasted sun. This was from a woman. It was like no other… and I liked it. I have developed a new emotion for Aranel at that moment, but I did not think that warm was an emotion. There is another name for it, but I did not need to discover it now, but I will hope to find it soon for I liked it very much.

**A/N: Hey guys thanks for reading, hope you like it and all. Now I will ask you to please review! Please I love them so much and I thank the people who have been reviewing. Keep it up!**


	4. Falling Into Her Gravity

I knew this was not right. I knew for the past three days that this was not right. It was not right to have these sort of feelings for an elf. And it was detrimental for both of us, especially when I am the son of Durza and she is a prisoner. I had to tell her that I could no longer hold this kind of company and hostility towards her. In fact I do not plan on seeing her pretty face. It would kill me, but it had to be done. Now you are probably wondering; But then Durza would be the one to watch over her! Calm down. I will never let him touch her again. I plan to do something so treacherous that I would never even think about doing. I plan to free her from this hell and go back to where she came from, yet I do not know when. But at least we will be apart for good. I cannot let her be around me, it was unhealthy for her. It seemed the right thing to do, but then why was I dreading the moment to tell her? Why have I become so weak in just an eye flash of her face?

Dinner time. I knew this was not going to be easy, to tell her that we can no longer see each other. But how could she refuse for me to set her out of this misery? She would be happy and because of that, it will make me happy too. I got her food and walked slowly to her prison cell. I went and opened the door and this time she was the one to greet me first,

"Hello, Kobal." She had such a soft tone that if I were a human I would not be able to hear her. I walked over to her and sat down next to her and replied,

"Good evening." I offered her the tray of food and she took it with most grace. She ate the bread, but this was strange. I usually test it for her to tell her that it is not poison.

"You know I did not test that for you," I said, but she looked up and said,

"I know. I trust you." Great, just great. Just when I am about to tell her off she tells me the one thing I have been wanting her to say to me. But I decided that this was a good way to start the conversation,

"Aranel, you should never trust a shade." She slowly shook her head and said,

"Didn't you want to win my trust just a day or two ago?" Damn, that was true. Another reason why I do not like elves, they think they know everything.

"Well, yes, but I am telling you that you are committing quite a sin to your fellow elves, yes? I am sure trusting a shade is not the best thing to do for your Ellesmera. In fact, it is the worst thing you could do." She shook her head again and giggled a bit as she said,

"No, trusting the King would be the worst thing." I did not laugh though. I was not a big supporter of Galbatorix, but he was our King and I respected him. I decided to change the topic and get right to it.

"Aranel, how would you like it if there was some way to get you out of Gil'ead?" She smiled the smile that I loved and said,

"I would love that, but do not fill my mind with these high hopes. I know that will not happen anytime soon." Well what was soon in her mind? This week, or next year?

"What if I told you that by the end of this week? Is that soon enough?" Her smile faded slowly and painfully. Oh no here comes the hard part,

"Kobal, what are you saying? Are you trying to help me escape? No, don't you dare do that. I do not want you to get punished by your father for me." I would die for her, but she did not need to know that. Actually, I don't think I should have told you that.

"Aranel, I want you out of this misery… and I feel that with me out of your life it will take all the pain away. You should not be friends with someone like me. And trust me, I can handle my father's pain. I am not weak." Aranel was in shock. There was no emotion on her face and I did not know what she was feeling until she spoke,

"No, please do not do this, Kobal. You make me feel like I am wanted in this world. Like you, Kobal, I can endure the pain as well. Elves are not weak no matter how much you think they are." What does she know? Oh right, almost everything on this damn planet since she's an elf. Woops I forgot.

"Aranel, you do not understand. The pain will only get worse, trust me I lived through seeing it all my life. This is your first week so those scars on you are nothing! There are times when a simple punishment is scratching out your eyes! You think you know everything, but apparently you know nothing about Gil'ead. That is the one thing you do not know." She could tell I was upset. My jaw was tight and clenched and I spat the words out of my mouth. She reached her warm hand upon my shoulder, and once that happened relaxation came over me, and I was not so sure I wanted to give that up quite yet.

"Kobal, I know you will not do anything like that to me." She really does not get it and this frustrated me.

"Aranel it will not be me to do those horrid things to you, but my father! You don't understand! My father loves the sight of pain! He loves to kill, that's why Galbatorix made my father leader of Gil'ead, because he sheds no mercy. That is why I want to get you out as soon as I can, because I know what my father is capable of." By this time Aranel's hand was off my shoulder and on her lap. Her face was hidden from my view and she said,

"Kobal, I do not want to be away from you. You do not understand my side of the story. You make me feel wanted, Kobal, I am happy when I am with you." Well there was one thing that I was sure of, she was joking. I got up and said,

"Please, Aranel. I make you happy? I cause you to cry almost every night!" She looked at me with soft eyes and said,

"And you are the one to catch every tear I drop." Good comeback. I decided to comment on what she said before,

"Wait, what do you mean 'You make me feel wanted'? Is Ellesmera too good for you?" I was being sarcastic but obviously she did not know that. She slowly nodded her head and said,

"That's exactly why, Kobal. I am not what you would call a perfect elf. And being Arya's best friend has its negative sides." What did she mean she was not a perfect elf? She looked perfect to me.

"Aranel, what are you talking about?" She sighed and said,

"Since I am almost everywhere with Arya people frown upon me and always think she is the better one. That is one of the reasons why I am here. I wanted to prove to the people that I could save Arya and show that this time I am the hero, but that plan failed. They think that I am not as great as her or as beautiful as her. Arya gets all the attention and I am nothing more than her little minion." Arya is not beautiful! How can she think this?

"Aranel, Arya will be never as beautiful as you." She looked at me with a twinkle in her eye and a slight smile but she quickly frowned and said,

"Try telling that to the people of Ellesmera." What the hell?

"Oh come on, Aranel! I bet boys swoon over you every time you walk by!" She shook her head and said,

"You would be the first." Wait, me? She thinks that I swoon over her? Well she was most definitely…. Right. Damn elf!

"You think that I … Aranel, I know it must be hard living with that reputation on your shoulders but let me tell you it will be better than being here, away from me." She looked hurt and I did not want to do that.

"Are you trying to push me away from you?" I went to her so quick that I must have startled her.

"Aranel, that is the last thing I want to do, but …"

"Then why does it feel like you are? I don't want to be away from you, Kobal. And I do not care that I am committing a sin to Ellesmera because it feels good doing so." Was she serious? How could she feel that way, going against her people? That was very un-elf like.

"You can't be serious," I said in a droll tone and that made her upset,

"Kobal just listen to me! I am telling the truth here and you keep on denying it. Kobal you are not as vile as you think you are, so stop bringing yourself down." She was right again! I was bringing myself down. Maybe it is possible that she could… No, Impossible.

"Aranel I will not let you stay here. All I need to do is think of some way to help you escape and once I do you will do as I say." She shook her head quickly and said,

"No, not without you." Did I put poison in her food? Why was she saying these things to me?

"Aranel, I cannot leave Gil'ead. If I do that then my father will send a whole search out for me and find a way to kill you." She took her warm hands into my cold ones and said,

"Kobal, do you not care for me? Let me stay with you, please." Her eyes were stabbing right through mine. They held me captive that I could not look away but I ended up saying,

"Aranel, you are an elf! Elves are supposed to have the most intelligent minds, but right now I cannot say the same for you. I care for you that is why I want to get you out of here. Why are being so sensitive about this? I'm trying to save you and you say no? I do not get you, Aranel." Her eyes were now growing softer and she tried to let go of my hands but now her hands were in my grip and I will not go until she tells me what is really going on.

"You obviously do not get me and I do not get you. You care so much for me and want me by you but you want to send me away so we could never see each other again. That is not what I would call a good friendship." God, why was she making this so hard! I grabbed her cheek brutally, but then gently caressed it as I said softly,

"Aranel I care for you so much, don't you understand? I may even … I don't even know what the other feeling is." She took my free hand and cradled it in hers as she said,

"May I help you find that feeling?" I smirked at her daring words. She really was a sinful elf and I liked it. Oh how I liked it. We both completely forgot about the topic that we were on and right now I was glad that we were off that subject and on a different one. I moved closer to her so that she was cornered and no way to escape. But she did not want to and I would not have let her.

"You have already helped me I just need to find the name." I was guessing she was speechless and I seemed to loose my breath as well. I inched even closer to her if that were even possible. I felt her wrap her arms around the small of my back and I liked that as well. My lips were so close to hers that I could barely say,

"I want to try something that might help me." After that she nodded faintly and peacefully closed her eyes. I closed my piercing red eyes as well and broke the invisible wall between us. A kiss is what people call it but that was not a good enough name for it. Her lips felt softer than they looked and I wanted more of that. I reached my free hand to her soft neck and my kissing became more deep as she dared to follow. No matter how much I liked this kissing I had to stop and breathe. I opened my eyes to find that she was looking at me with a trivial smile on her face. Still I got no answer of what to this feeling might be so I gave in on guessing and let her tell me what it was.

"What is this feeling?" I whispered. She caught my gaze again and whispered back,

"I believe it is called love." Love? Was that it? I have not heard that word in such a long time that I must have forgotten that it existed. Love. Maybe that is what a kiss should be called. So that was the answer to why I have been ill minded. Love. Well I knew for sure that I love the feeling love. And now I must tell Aranel what I have been wanting to say for days now,

"I love you." I felt her breath got taken away when I said that but she managed to say,

"I love you too, Kobal." No one has ever said that to me, not even my own father. And I, like Aranel, became breathless for it was the best thing to hear. She loves me. What a miracle for a beauty like her loves a shade like me. And so I am proud to say that I Kobal loves an elf named Aranel.

**A/N: Thanks for reading! Now REVIEW! **


	5. She Gets My Senses Running Wild

So we settled on something. I would help her get out of Gil'ead if we see each other at the end of each week … or month. I did not know exactly what the plan was but I still had to think of an escape plan for her. But right now that was not as big as an issue as my father. He knew something was going on. May I remind you my father is not stupid. Not stupid at all.

"Kobal!" My father shouted down the hall as I was headed toward the kitchen. This was not going to be good. I turned around slowly and gave my father a bit of a smile as I said,

"Father, what brings you here?" No smile at all on his face just his eyes seeing through mine. But then he gave a slight smile and said,

"Oh nothing, I am just letting you off for the rest of the night. You do not have to afflict Aranel tonight." Well that simply could not happen. I still had my smile on and said,

"Oh no you do not have to do that. I can never get tired of tormenting her." I was sly let me tell you that. I can lie my way out of anything, but my father knew my ways for that is how he taught me. He shook his head and smiled back at me,

"No, I insist." There was no way I would ever let hum hurt her again. Not to someone I actually love. I turned away from him and walked to the kitchen as I said,

"Father, please do not waste an ounce of energy on her. It is not worth it." As I was about to walk through the kitchen he appeared right in front of me and said,

"Kobal, I have a strong feeling …." He looked around and saw that there were many soldiers preparing dinner for prisoners. Now this angered him so he yelled in his demonic voice,

"OUT!" Nobody hesitated. Everyone ran out the doors with trays in their hands or even no trays at all. I wish I could run out of those doors as well but I knew better than that. His eyes never averted away from my face and I cannot tell you how uncomfortable that made me. He led me into the kitchen and said,

"Now, Kobal, why does it bother you that I pay a visit to Aranel?" Why? Because you will harm her and for that I will have to do the same to you! Well that is what I wanted to say at least but it sounded more like this,

"Because I have everything under control. I do not see a problem here." As I was headed to the table of food my father appeared right in front of me and said in a low voice,

"Oh I most definitely see a problem here." Alright, this is where I became pretty angry. I slammed the tray on the table and turned to face him and almost yelled,

"What is the damn problem then? Because I do not see one!" And just like that my father smacked me and I sure as hell deserved it. I never talked to my father that way. As I held my reddened cheek he whispered in my ear,

"If there is no problem then why are you being so cynical?" He grabbed me by the back of my head and pulled my hair hard. He then pushed me out of the kitchen and said,

"Go to your room. You are banished to see Aranel." What? No that cannot and will not happen.

"No I refuse," I dared to say. My father stalked toward me with each foot stamping violently on the floor. He was inches from my face as he said,

"What was that?" I would be an idiot if I repeated what I said so I turned away from him as I sauntered down the hall to my room. That Bastard! Me, banished? I am his own son he cannot do that! The nerve he had to say that to me. Oh god what am I saying? I respect my father! It's quite astonishing of what a woman whom you love can do to your mind. She switched my whole aspect of my father but it made me realize of what a monster he is and the monster I _was_. She made me realize that I can have a bit of good in myself and that disgusted and delighted me at the same time.

--------

I planned to see her in early morning, hours before the sun came up when everyone was asleep even my father. I sneaked out of my room quietly but that was no problem for a shade like me. I ran down the halls while each footstep softly echoed. I was scared for Aranel and what my father did to her. I swear I will kill him if he hurt her. Well, there goes my 'I hate father' side of my mind. I finally got to her door and I heard her chain move against the hard floor as I jostled the key in. One important thing my father forgot was the key. I opened the door and Aranel was standing in the middle of the cell smiling slightly as she said softly,

"Kobal." I loved it when she said my name. But then her smile faded and she fell forward. I quickly dived in and caught her in my arms holding her tightly. Oh no this is exactly what I was not hoping for.

"Aranel, what happened to you?" I looked down at her face and saw the same scar from a few days ago but no new one. She did not answer immediately and this worried me.

"Aranel answer me!" Her face matched the complexion of mine and that was not normal, not even for an elf. All of the sudden I felt a warm moist feeling on my left hip. I pulled her away from me, still holding her, and got a better look at her. She was hurt alright and worse than she had ever been. On her upper right torso there was a bleeding patch and it made me want to … god! I don't even know! She fell back in my arms and quietly wept into my shoulder. She muffled into me,

"He came in here and started throwing me around and hitting me! He did not even ask me any questions. He just continued to hit me until I bled!" This disturbed me in such a great deal. I stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head and said,

"Let me heal you." I felt her shake her head into my chest and say,

"No you will get..."

"I am already in trouble. He banished me to see you because he knew that there was something going on between us. Aranel once I find a way to get you out of here you must do it." She nodded softly and said,

"If you keep your promise." How could I not see her? How could I be away from her?

"I will never give it up." I said softly. I felt her strength dissolve as she held loosely to me.

"Aranel let me heal you." I looked down at her and she just nodded faintly. I looked down to see how her wound was doing and it was worse as the blood stained to the bottom of her tunic and dripped down on my boot. This was not good, too much blood was evading from her fragile body. I slowly lowered her body on the ground as her blood dyed my fingers. I heard her faintly say,

"Please make the pain stop."

"I will, I will. Just take deep breaths in and out. I am here now. You're safe with me." I told her that over and over again until her breathing became calm and under control. I lifted her shirt up slowly until I stopped and saw my father's marking. Four deep bloody wounds were embedded into her skin. I winced at this sight, but if it were another prisoner I would laugh and make the pain even worse. But besides the crimson scrape that was overflowing with her warm blood her body was absolutely gorgeous. Her tone was so clear and pale and her skin stretched over her bones and muscles perfectly. I quickly came back to reality and hovered my bloodied hand over her wound and whispered the healing words. My dark red magic flowed from my palm as her pale skin broadened beautifully over the hideous scar that has now disappeared. Now her body was a vision of every man's dream, and she was all mine. She was motionless as she said,

"Thank you." I replied with pulling her tunic down to cover her stunning body. She still did not sit up and I looked to her face to find that she was staring back at me. I think my heart might have stopped, but somehow I remembered to breathe. Her face still left me breathless and I was caught off guard, you would be too if you saw her beauty. She patted to the empty floor right next to her signaling me lay next to her. I did what she wanted me to do as we both stared at the ceiling, which was no fun task. If we could just replace the ceiling with stars it would be much more pleasing for my eyes. I felt awful for Aranel. She had not seen stars, trees, the sun, the blue skies for about two weeks now. What torture especially for an elf. I turned my gaze to her and her eyes looked pained as she looked to the dreadful ceiling.

"What are you thinking about?" I asked softly. Her brown eyes found mine and she locked my gaze with no problem. I swear it was like she could read my mind because she said,

"What was the weather like today, Kobal?" I smiled my white teeth at her and said,

"Well it was sunny day without one cloud in the sky, but very cold. Finally, that winter air is coming." I loved the winter and the snow. And to my surprise she did too,

"Winter. It is one of the most beautiful seasons. You should see what it is like in Ellesmera when it is winter. Striking ice crystals hang from snow covered trees and when the sun peeks through the crystals it shows dancing reflections on the white snow. It's beautiful." I was amazed by how poetic she made a simple sentence sound. She can turn anything into a piece of art. I tried to do the same,

"Yes, here in Gil'ead the snow is really nice against the rocks. And the trees look nice too when they are covered in snow. Oh and the way that the icicles drops down and breaks a squirrel's neck is humorous, and … " She finally stopped my bad poetry with laughter as she said,

"Kobal, that's awful! It is humorous when you see a squirrel dies under the pointed nose of an icicle?" I looked away from her and grinned and said,

"I am a shade." She giggled again as she wrapped her arm around my torso and rested her head in my chest. Well, I was not expecting this. But I went along with it and wrapped my arm around her as she sighed out,

"That seems to be the explanation for everything." I laughed a bit because it was true. I felt her giggle softly against my body and I looked down and saw that her eyes were closed peacefully. Seeing that made me want to fall asleep as well, but I could not let that happen. I did not want to get out of this perfect position, though. So I took the one of the biggest risks of my life, besides loving an elf, and held her tighter against my cold body. And no matter how hard I tried to fight, sleep won the battle. And so here is the first time I actually felt warm while falling into my daring slumber.

**A/N: Daring little shade. I apologize for a longish update all of the Christmas shopping and holiday crap made everything hectic, but I hope you liked it. Okay so do what you do best and review please!**


	6. With a Little Help From My Friend

"Well, well, well what do we have here?" I heard a voice say and this scared me. God, how it scared me. I was afraid to open my eyes to see who it was, but it did not sound like my father so I took a chance and opened my eyes. Outside the door stood my good friend, Gilmor, who was a shade like me. He was only a few years older than me and had longer, wavier hair that was down to his shoulders, it was also a dark red like any other shade. He too was beautiful but with calmer features than mine. His face was smoother and more gentle than mine or probably any shade out there. In fact, his appearance was so beautiful that it was his job. He works here only to get answers from women, so all he has to do is to mesmerize the women with his beauty and just like that he gets answers from them. He did not even have to hurt them but that never stopped him. He was a very good friend of mine, but with something like Aranel sleeping on my chest I am not so sure I can trust him.

I slowly got up trying not to waken Aranel but her eyes were shot open and looking at Gilmor. I walked to the door and opened it for Gilmor and I heard Aranel move into the corner of the cell. Gilmor looked at her too as if she were something to eat, but I quickly snapped him out of it as I said,

"What brings you here?" He looked to me and smiled as he said,

"I was just walking by and I saw you two cuddled up sleeping. Not something you see every day, actually, its something I have never seen. Does your father know about this?" I did not know how to answer that, but I figured that he did so I said,

"I think he might. He banished me to see her so…"

"Banished? And here you are sleeping with her! My, my, Kobal, I thought you respected your father." I looked down and smiled a bit as I said,

"You have no idea, Gilmor."

"No idea about what? … Don't tell me that young Kobal is in love." I looked to him and gave him a smile to show that he was right. He smiled too and laughed out,

"Kobal, you are going to be killed! Your father will lynch you to a tree!" I laughed too and I never thought I would laugh over a matter like this, but Gilmor put it in such a humorous way. He looked back to Aranel then took my gaze in and said,

"Well she is a beauty and I can see she is afraid of me." He chuckled and I did too as I gazed back to the corner to see her balled up. I walked to her slowly as if I were approaching a frightened animal. Gilmor followed as I crouched down and placed my hand on her shoulder as I said,

"Aranel, this is my friend Gilmor." She still looked quite frightened so Gilmor bent down and said,

"No need to be afraid of me, love." There he goes unleashing his charm. Aranel seemed to calm down a bit as Gilmor took her hand and said,

"Aranel, such a pleasure to meet you." Then he led her hand to his lips and kissed her hand. That was Gilmor for you there and although it was his instinct to do that I became a little angry with him. I grabbed the back of his tunic and said,

"And it is about time for you to go." He smiled slightly and said,

"I was just introducing myself to her." I sighed and knew this was true. I turned to him and gave him a little smile to show him I was not mad and said,

"Just go." I turned away and kneeled down to Aranel but then I heard him say,

"Alright, but I must ask you … You are banished to be here, yes? So I imagine that Durza would not be so happy that you are here. Correct me if I am wrong." He was right and I was happy he reminded me. I looked to Aranel and she had on that innocent face of hers. I held it and said,

"I must go, but I will see you again tonight. I promise." She grabbed my face as well and kissed me. I kissed back and we both did not hesitate to let go until Gilmor said,

"Kobal? Your father may I remind you." I came up for a breath and looked to him and said,

"Right, thanks for that." I turned to Aranel and gave her one last kiss on her forehead and she said ever so softly,

"I love you." I smiled at her and those words as I replied,

"And I you." After that I stood up and followed Gilmor outside. Once I locked the door I turned to him and he had a slight smile on his face but his red eyes were not so friendly. He put his arm around me as we sauntered down the hall and he said,

"Kobal, what are you getting yourself into? Falling in love with a prisoner and not only a prisoner an elf! You might as well prepare the fire you are about to jump into." I knew all of this. He did not have to tell me. So him being my best friend I asked him for help.

"I know Gilmor, but I cannot help it. That is why I want to ask you for help." He took his arm off of me and he stopped as he said,

"Oh no. Don't you drag me into this! I am afraid of your father enough as it is!" I smiled a bit then became serious and said,

"Please Gilmor she is very important to me. I have never loved before and this is something I do not want to give up!" Gilmor stepped back and looked hurt as he said,

"You never loved me? Kobal, I am your best friend!" Now I knew he was kidding I played along and laughed, but slapped him in the back of the head and said,

"Come on! Be serious! I really don't know what to do. My father is not in charge of her now and god knows I don't want that! He hurts her, Gilmor, and every time I see her it's a new scar from my father!" Gilmor pursed his lips and said,

"Well you shouldn't be surprised, that is what your father does." I needed answers! All he was doing was just giving me facts about my father. I grabbed him by the shoulders and said,

"Gilmor! Please I need your help!" He smiled and laughed out,

"Alright, alright! Just give me my shoulders back!" I hadn't realized I held onto his shoulders so tightly. I let go and he rolled his shoulders forward and backwards many times before he said,

"Alright, so what do you want for me to do? To find a way from Durza to stop seeing Aranel?" I nodded anxiously. I felt like a dog waiting to receive one hell of a bone. Gilmor thought for a moment and said,

"Well, I could try to persuade Durza for him to let me watch over Aranel, but I will not promise anything. Your father may not let me because he knows I do not do the punishing part but we shall see." I was happy for this plan it was not great but it could work. My father had a lot of respect for Gilmor so this could follow through. I smiled and gave him a manly hug as I said,

"Thank you Gilmor! Thank you! I am forever in your debt!" I heard Gilmor chuckle out,

"You bet you are."

-----------------

It felt like many hours passed as Gilmor talked to my father about Aranel, but strangely it was only about fifteen minutes. Once Gilmor came in my room I jumped up from my bed and said excitedly,

"Well, what did he say?" Gilmor did not smile, and that was not a good sign. Great! Now my beautiful Aranel will have to suffer. No, I will get her out of here … tonight. Gilmor finally spoke,

"He managed to say … yes." And just like that a smile appeared on his face and one on mine. Forget my plans I had a moment ago! This one will follow through. I yelled in triumph even though to you it may not sound so exciting, but to me it was the best thing to hear right now.

"So what exactly did you say?" I said, eager to hear his sneaky lie. He sat on my bed and said,

"Well I told your father that I noticed there was a new prisoner in Gil'ead and I offered if I can grace her with my presence. I persuaded him with reminding him of my outstanding skills of getting answers from prisoners. So, he was very intrigued and he let me take over. But I must remind you, Kobal, that if she does not answer my questions I will have to punish her, but never as much as your father did." I understood, but it killed. At least she was away from my father. Gilmor got off my bed and made his way out the door. Now, where was he off to?

"Where are you going?" Gilmor turned to me and said,

"It is a little past breakfast time. You do not want your Aranel to starve now do you?" With that being said he smiled and left. I smiled to knowing that Aranel was in good hands.

------------------------

I came to her the same time I had last early morning. I was excited to see of how she was without a new wound on her body. Once I unlocked her door and came in I heard her whisper with enthusiasm,

"Kobal!" Well I guess she was not nearly dead so that was a good sign. She sounded happy. It was extremely dark in that room even for a shade but I finally found her and wrapped my arms around tightly. She imitated me and wrapped her arm around my waist feeling the warmth I waited for throughout the day. I loosened my grip on her to take a look at her and not a scratch on her. I smiled and said,

"Did Gilmor treat you well?" Her smile grew and said,

"Yes he was very kind to me and … very seductive. But I was not influenced by his actions." Actions? Great, what did he do to her that was seductive. I became worried and I hope he did not go over the top with his seduction.

"What did he do to you?" I asked in a worried voice as I grabbed her shoulders tightly. All she did was laugh so I guess that was a good sign.

"Don't worry, Kobal, he just persuaded me by touching my cheek or hand like you did that first night." Well that sounded like Gilmor, but hopefully that will not turn into what me and Aranel turned into, besides he knew not to have relations with prisoners since he was not foolish like me. I looked down at her face and I guess she saw my worried look so she reached her warm hands to my face and said,

"Kobal, I will never let him go any further than that and he will not. Don't let this get to you." She pulled my face into the gravity of hers and we kissed slowly at first, but the quickened with more passion. I grabbed the small of her back as she tangled her fingers in my hair. All of this felt so good and I couldn't get enough of it. I slowly backed her into the wall, careful not to bash her sweet head against the wall. Once she was where I wanted her to be I started to kiss down her neck and stopping at her collarbone. What really shocked me is that her clothes reeked of the smell of blood but her skin smelled like the forest. She had been in this hell hole for almost a month and she still smelled like the forests of Ellesmera. Amazing.

She held to me tightly she her hand was still on my head, caressing every little hair on my head. I kissed back up her neck and met her lips again as she was eager to meet them. I then heard a presence in the room, but I ignored it. I was so spell bound by Aranel's grasp, but then I felt someone else's grasp grabbing the back of my tunic.

"What the hell?" I accidentally said out loud. But then I realized who it could be. My father. I froze I just simply could not move but then I heard a voice,

"Don't give me that approach! I am saving your ass!" Thank God! It was Gilmor and he was saving me yet again. But what was going on?

"Wait, what's going on?" He turned me towards him and he had on a panicked face. He quickly said,

"Your father, he was walking toward your room and he looked angry. He assumes something, Kobal, and you need to leave Aranel now! He can appear any second!" Fantastic. I panicked as well, but I needed one more kiss from Aranel and to tell her everything was going to be okay, but Gilmor would not let me. He grabbed my back again but this time he took me somewhere else. Aranel was not there the ugly stone wall was not there. But what I did see was the early morning sky and trees surrounding beneath me. I did not know where I was, but I knew I was elevated quite a way off the ground. I turned and saw Gilmor in a ball with his face in pain. Great! What the hell happened?

"Gilmor, are you alright?" I asked as I touched his shoulder but he recoiled and said in a sharp tone,

"Don't touch me!" What the hell? But then I started to understand. This was something that happened to me when I teleported for the first time. But Gilmor always teleported what was so different this time? I waited moments until he finally curled out of the ball his was so tightly in and said,

"Sorry, it took a lot of my strength to do that." Confused, I said,

"Why you do that a lot almost as frequent as my father." He shook his head and chuckled painfully out,

"Kobal, your so thoughtless! Of course I can transport by myself all the time, but with two people it takes a lot out of me." Of course! I am usually intelligent, but I guess I was a little empty headed at the moment. I fixed my gaze to the horizon to see that Gil'ead was not too far away, but where were we? I looked around and were on an edge of a tall cliff, a very tall cliff. I sat upright and dangled my feet off the edge as I looked down to the clash of trees that lay below. Gilmor joined in and sighed as he said,

"Durza was very angry for two reason, Kobal." Two? Great now I am in double trouble?

"Great! Well, let's hear it then." Gilmor sighed again and looked to the horizon and said,

"Well you know this one; he thinks you and Aranel have a relationship, but there is something that made him mad that has nothing to do with you two… You know Eragon, yes? The next pathetic dragon rider?" Oh yes, right him. Well I have forgotten all about him and I wanted to know more,

"What about him?" Gilmor clenched his jaw and still held his eyes to the horizon as he said,

"Apparently he is a big threat, there have been stories about him already and it has only been a month! A stupid farm boy becomes a legend it's … it's just not right … Anyway this angered your father and I think he was on his way to your room to take his anger out on you, and I could not let that happen to my friend." He placed his hand on my shoulder, but I was dreadfully confused,

"My father would never do that." Gilmor shook his head and said,

"Think again because by the look of him, he was not going into your room to have a sweet conversation and he would be even angrier to not find you in your room. So please do not hesitate to say thank you." Woops I forgot my manners,

"Sorry, Thanks… So anyway about this Eragon, what's with him?" Gilmor shook his head and said,

"Nothing but a disgrace. A fifteen year old farm boy as the next dragon rider! What folly! He's probably a pathetic, weak, little boy. I will laugh to see the day he falls!" As Gilmor talked more and more about this Eragon the more I hated him. That Eragon better not think he is greater than me or anyone else because he will be in for one hell of a surprise. Something tells me if we ever cross paths it will not be a happy ending for him and his dragon.

**A/N: So yea sorry for another longish update. PLEASE REVIEW THOUGH! I am getting a lot of favorite story alerts from many people yet I only get two to three reviews per chapter. Please review! I love reviews! But thanks for reading guys I really do appreciate it. Okay I will let you review now. **


	7. Home is Behind, The World Ahead

A month and a week or two passed by. But don't worry nothing really happened. I didn't see Aranel a lot, unfortunately. I only saw her about three to two times a week. And what happened with my father and I? Honestly, I have only seen him once throughout this time span. He has been so busy with the whole dragon rider business that I never got to see him, but I know when he is around. If I hear a scream down a hallway or the sound of bones crushing; that would be my father. Yes, I have not seen him for about a month, until the night that made my life worth living for. My life was of a simple shade trapped in Gil'ead and destined to follow his father's footsteps, but tonight changed everything. Tonight is when I started to actually live.

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It was early morning so you should know by now what I do in the early mornings. As Aranel and I lied down in the corner of her cell I imagined the starry night sky in place of the ugly ceiling. We were huddled very close together for it was cold. I acted cold so she could huddle closer to me and share her warmth but in truth, I never get cold. My arms were wrapped tightly around her torso as we sat in silence for a moment or two until she finally turned to me and said,

"Any warmer than before?" I smiled and nodded as I said,

"Yes. How could I ever be cold around you?" She smiled and kissed me gently on my lips. I wished that the kiss was longer, so I did what my instincts told me. I reached to her chin and kissed her and obviously she knew what I wanted for that kiss did not stop there. Without breaking away from her I moved on top of her and my hand voyaged the slopes of her beautiful body. She, too, could not keep her hands off of me and in fact she attempted to take my shirt off. And I did what she wanted. Quickly breaking away from her lips and ripped my shirt off of my pale body. Her warm hands sent chills down my spine, but I had been away from her lips for too long. I met her lips as she eagerly did the same. So much adrenaline was me that I just could not stop, but I did not want to either. I traced my hand up her body and to her shoulders as I shifted one side of her tunic to the other side, leaving one shoulder bare and beautiful. I kissed down her soft neck that, may I add, still smelled like the sweet forest.

But some part of me did not want to do this. Not here and not now. I did not want to make love in this grotesque cell. It was not fair for her and if it was not fair for her then it was not fair for me. And then I wondered why was she still here? Why was she still in this prison when I have promised to set her free? I stopped caressing her with my kisses and looked at her. She smiled and chuckled,

"What?" I smiled back, maybe she was happy. Maybe tonight is not the night for an escape but for something else. It's funny how my mind changes rapidly with just the sight of her smile. I ignored the negative thoughts that I had and reunited my lips with hers. And this time I would not let go. Now I do not how to describe this part because it happened in all of a quick blur, but I will do my best to fill you in.

As I kissed down her sweet neck the ground shook beneath me as ceiling sand drizzled down to the shaking floors. Oh god, what is happening? Hope it's not my father. I looked to Aranel suspecting her to be scared, but she was quite the opposite. She looked at the ceiling and smiled. What? This was not a good thing! Then I heard something most fowl but delightful to my ears. It was shrieking like a falcon in the sky but broad and loud like a lion. Now what was this creature? Aranel smiled even more and said,

"He's here Kobal! The next dragon rider!" Oh god! He's here? Well he will not be any longer. I bared my teeth just thinking about this foolish boy for showing up here in Gil'ead. Aranel saw my face and her smile disappeared, but right now I did not care. I stood up with my fists balled up and my jaw clenched. I looked outside the door and saw guards rushing upstairs and I tried to follow them, but something held me back.

"No, Kobal, don't!" I turned to her furiously and said,

"Why not? He is a disgrace! He deserves to know that this was not the right place to come!" I snapped my wrist away from her hand and walked violently out the door, but then I felt another tug at my bare arm, I turned around and said in a vicious voice,

"What?" It was Gilmor and he was out of breath, a very odd appearance to see on a shade. He also had a shocked look on and said,

"What were you doing in there?" I looked down and realized that my shirt was off, but I did not care. I said in an impatient voice,

"What do you want, Gilmor? Hurry it up because I want to be done with this rider once and for all." Gilmor shook his head,

"No, not now." What the hell?

"What are you talking about? This is the perfect time to do so!" He shook his head and said,

"No. It's the perfect time to get Aranel out of here." _The perfect time to get Aranel out of here_. He was absolutely right, it was perfect. No one would be guarding the doors since they would be upstairs fighting. Brilliant! I ran back to her cell with Gilmor following me as he explained,

"Now you must hurry up. The guards are distracted by Eragon, but your father is not easily fooled. Hurry!" I ran into her cell and I took her hand and said,

"Come we must hurry!" She ran with me as she said,

"What? What's going on?" I ran even faster as I muttered,

"I am getting you out of here. This is the time Aranel and now you must do everything I tell you to do, do you understand?" I looked to her face as I saw her shake her head. Gilmor ran beside us as he said,

"I will distract your father as much as I can, but hurry!" He ran the other way now as Aranel and I barely touched the ground as we ran down different hallways. The exit was just around the corner. We will make it! But as we made the turn the ceiling was already falling apart with Gil'ead's walls tumbling down, but there was a chance we could make it. There was no time to head for the other exit which was on the other side of Gil'ead. This was the only way out.

Aranel tried to do her best to keep up with my incredible speed, but with her old injuries she could not keep up with my rapid pace. I picked her up as I said quite loudly so I was heard over the tumbling rocks,

"You don't let go! You here me? Don't you dare!" She nodded as she tucked her face into my bare chest. I kissed her head just before I was about to dodge the falling walls, but someone called out and it was just the someone I was not hoping to see,

"Kobal!" I turned around and it was my father right down the hall his face was calm and expressionless, but once he witnessed what was in my arms his face was far from expressionless. He looked hurt but furious at the same time. He took a few steps as he said,

"What are you doing?" The ground rumbled below my feet as the chunks of Gil'ead fell to the ground. I looked up to the ceiling and it looked like it was about the next thing to go. I answered without any hesitation,

"I'm saving her." And those three words burned into my father's skin, I could tell. It looked like he got stabbed as I said that but he managed to keep a straight posture, but his lips could not help but tighten as he said,

"And why are you doing this, Kobal? She is an elf! My son does not save any prisoners, especially elves. What has gotten into you?" I looked to the ceiling again and in a matter of seconds it would crumble over all three of us. I said the truth,

"Love. I found love within her. I love her." All the anger was washed away with my father's face and it was replaced with pain. The ceiling was cracking and breaking away tiny rocks. There was only one way to get out now and it was not the exit, it was something much riskier. I held Aranel close as I yelled to her,

"Lend me your magic, I am not strong enough to do this myself!" She out her hand to my chest as green magic flowed from her hand and into my chest. I looked to my father one more time. I could barely see him with all the sand and rocks that poured down around us, but I heard him yell,

"NO!" And just before the ceiling fell Aranel and I were on the forest's floor. You may think it was a good thing but I had never felt so much before in my life. I heard Aranel say my name so many times along with other things, but I was in so much pain that I could not hear much. It felt like all my insides were shutting down, I couldn't breathe. Were my lungs down? Did they detonate along with everything else? What was this? I grabbed a handful of grass as I huddled on the ground hoping the earth's dust would be some sort of medicine. But it wasn't.

I tried to scream, oh how I tried, but my throat was closing up. Was I dying? If I was, I wanted to be done with it right away just to get he pain out. But the pain started to recede as I felt a cool breeze rush over my body. I looked to my arms and saw green glowing vines embracing me. Each vein was like cooling water pouring all of my body, it healed everything. My insides didn't burn, instead my body went to its normal temperature. I felt another thing embrace me, but this time it was warm instead of the cooing water. I looked up to find I was in Aranel's arms as she said over and over,

"Kobal! Are you alright? Kobal, say something!" I smiled at her care and worry for me. No one was ever this scared for me. If it were my father he would tell me to suck it up and get on my feet. But she cares and loves me, and I care and love her. She grabbed my face lightly as she said again,

"Kobal, please say something." I reached my hand over to the back of her head as I said softly,

"I love you." Then I pulled her in for a kiss, and that could heal anything. As we broke away from that kiss we both heard another loud crash and the same odd roar from the dragon. We were at the same place Gilmor took me a few months ago so we could see everything that was happening. The dragon was absolutely gorgeous. Its scales glistened in the newly awakened sun peaking over the trees. Her wings were magnificent and showed great muscle with each flap she took. She was a sight to see especially when she took off and flew over Aranel and I with great speed. And then I saw a glimpse of this Eragon. He was a boy with dark brunette hair and he held high a red blade and it looked familiar, but that was all I saw. Even though I hated him and still do to this very day I couldn't help but thank him for Aranel's escape. I said softly under my breath as I watched them fly away,

"Thank you."

**A/N: Thanks for reviewing guys and I hope you liked this chapter. For those who have not been reviewing, review! Thanks.**


	8. There Are Many Paths to Tread

The blasted sun awoke me from my sleep. I actually had a fairly well rest but that damned sun was daring this morning or afternoon. But then when I saw Aranel snuggled in my chest keeping me warm for I still was bare chested. I did not want to wake her so I slowly moved out of my place and thought about what happened this morning. No, there was too much to think about, but here let me fill you in. It is not morning. In fact, at this point the sun was nearly to the setting point. Aranel and I decided to get some sleep after her escape took place. It was dawn then and now it is dusk. Now, are we all filled in? Good.

I sat looking at the setting sun and I never saw a sunset this beautiful. The winter sky mixed in with the hot setting sun and together they created something indescribable. Aranel had to see this. After being locked in that awful prison for two months, her eyes needed to consume this scene. I quickly turned to her and stroked her soft face as her brown eyes glanced at mine. She smiled and I realized I was smiling the whole time. Instead of looking like a smiling fool I said,

"I think you will like to see this." I grabbed her hand softly and led her to the edge of the cliff and looked to her face. The sunset reflected off of her face beautifully and a tear twinkled off of her face. This was the first time I saw her crying with a smile on her face. And for that I smiled as well. She hugged my torso making me warm as usual but her tears rubbed off of my face sending chills down my spine. Now was perfect. Not this early morning. This was the perfect moment. I reached to her face and slowly and kissed her passionately. I think she knew what I was planning and she made no effort to stop me. In fact, she led me back to the ground where she wrapped her hands around my frozen, pale back. Just as I was about to slither her shirt off of her shoulders Aranel looked up in a startle.

Great! What's going on now! I turned and saw Gilmore. He was completely out of breath and had a relieved look on is face but I was angry. He always would interrupt Aranel and I! I rolled off of Aranel and sighed,

"What is it Gilmor? No matter where we are you find some way of interrupting Aranel and …" Gilmor got angry with me,

"You shut up!" Well I was not expecting that. He came at me and said,

"Do you know how long I looked for you two! All damn day! I was about to give up since your father cried over and over again 'He's dead! My only son, my only blood has fallen!' But I kept going because I knew you were still alive." I was shocked. Cried? Impossible. My father does not cry. I could not speak I was completely stunned and numb. He grabbed my shoulder and shook me as he said,

"Kobal! You must go back there and tell your father that you are alive! I will find Aranel some shelter, but you must go now!" I was still frozen but my mouth seemed to form the words,

"He cried?" Gilmor sighed and was silent for a moment and then he finally said,

"Yes. I did see a tear fall here and there, but he was mostly screaming in pain. Kobal, you may not know it, but you are his life. You do not know how much you mean to him. You truly do not." Of course I always have to cause a problem. But I did not know I was a big part of his life. I felt like crying. I felt like screaming and tearing out all my hair because I felt so guilty for making him feel this way. But only if I knew how to cry! If I did I probably couldn't stop. Gilmor awoke me from my predicament and said,

"Kobal, you must go, your father was ail when I left him and he probably grew more so." He got me on my feet and pushed me, but I did not go. My Aranel, I cannot just leave her.

"Gilmor, what of Aranel? I must…"

"I have it taken care of. She will reside with an old friend not so far from here. Kobal, GO!" He bared his teeth at me and was about to pounce on me if I did not take speed. I did not want to cause another problem so I lightly kissed Aranel and said,

"I will come back for you." With one last look at her soft brown eyes I ran off as tree branches brushed my arms, guiding my way back to the prison I had finally escaped from.

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I stepped through the exit I had escaped from. It was clear no rocks and stones scrambled on the ground. I looked around and it was vacant. No guards, no soldiers, no father. I walked to the end of the hallway and yet no presence of any being. Where could everyone be? Eragon could not have destroyed them all, he's too pathetic! But I continued to search for my father. I walked all over Gil'ead. I went to Arya's cell where he usually spends all of his time torturing her but strangely it was empty. I growled in anger. Where the hell could he be?

I walked to his headquarters where he plans may things with his soldiers, he was probably there. I was foolish for not looking there in the first place. I stood in front of the big heavy door as if I was under some kind of spell, but I managed to touch the door knob and turn it. I looked in and there was my father at his desk going over something with one of his soldiers. His back was turned to me, but by his posture I could tell he was angry with not hearing a knock at the door. I heard his shrill tone,

"Who dares to enter without knocking?" He turned around and the angry look was clean gone from his face. It was replaced with grief and confusion but I could detect a little bit of hope. He was speechless and so was I. He motioned for his soldier to leave the room. His footsteps echoed throughout the room leaving it awkwardly quiet. Once the door was shut my father said in a trembling voice,

"Kobal?" I nodded and said in a voice that matched his,

"Yes father."

"But you… I saw you fall under the breaking walls! How can you be alive?" I was a little let down.

"So you are sorry that the rocks did not kill me is that what you are saying? Because if you want I can just leave and we can pretend that is what happened." Ouch. Harsh. I probably should have not said that, I already made him feel guilty enough. He raised his voice at me but not like he was mad, like he was about to cry.

"No! Kobal I am not saying that at all! Do you know how heart broken I was to see my own son fall under a collapsing wall? I did not want you dead, Kobal and I will never want you dead. You are my son and I …" Was he going to say the "L" word? Love? My father love me? It is hard for me to believe that for I have never heard him say that to me before, not once. But he did not say the word, instead he came to me and embraced me tightly. I hugged back savoring every minute of it because I knew I will probably never get another hug from him again. As I stood there locked in his arms I said the words he was never man enough to say,

"I love you, father." After that he remained frozen. I felt no grasp of him. Maybe I had said the wrong thing. Maybe a shade should never say that to his father. It was all loud an clear when he stepped away from me and went back to his desk. No "I love you" back to me. Just a cold hard turn of the boot sinking into the solid ground. I must have inherited the heart from my mother because that man has no heart. Just black inside and that is the worst curse of all. His back was to me as he said,

"Send Linuin back in. We must go over these…"

"I will ask you father, how on earth did you get my mother to love you? How on earth were you able to do that, because you have no heart! Your son has just told you that he loves you but you just turn away! Not once have you told me that you loved me! So again I will ask what my mother saw in you!" I was yelling, infuriated by his actions. I expected him to run up to me and smack me several times until I bled. But he stood with a straight posture and said simply,

"Love has done nothing for me but heart ache and sorrow. Your mother is nothing but a painful memory and love is the last thing I need from anybody." O but he was lying. Love is the thing that he is craving for most of all, he is just afraid to feel that feeling again, but I do not know why it frightens him so much.

"Father, you have not answered my question. How did my mother love you and how did you love her. You must have felt love at some point in your life because you made me." He sighed and said,

"Kobal, we will not go over it now I must…"

"The damn plans can wait! Just tell me now, stop running away from it! I should know my mother's story since I have never seen her face!" He was shocked to see me use this tone with him, but he knew that if he charged I will fight back, and he was right. I will fight back like I never had before.

"Kobal, I was helplessly in love with your mother and she felt the same. She was a prisoner and I was her tormentor. She was an elf and I was a shade." What? My ears could not believe this. So far it sounded like a story I was going through right now.

"I could not help but love her. I could not hurt her. Castial was her name and she was beautiful. And we were in love, then we had you. We were happy all of us three, but with her being an elf and I being a shade there were many things we did not agree on. So one morning I awoke and saw a note at the side of my bed. It is self explanatory that she left us." Now I understand why he hates elves, why he hates everything. The poor man was heart broken and by the looks of him he is still heart broken.

"That is why I wanted you to stay away from Aranel. I did not want you to get hurt like I did."

"So you choose me not to feel love at all? Is that what your plan is? I rather to love than not love at all." He shook his head and said,

"You're so young to be saying these things Kobal! And, Kobal, that statement may be true, but you will disagree with it once she stomps all over your heart." I was furious with him to make such predictions,

"Why do you plant this into my head? She is not like that father! She loves me she has told me that every day! And I love her too and you cannot stop it." My father looked down and said,

"Kobal, think about what you are doing! Hasn't my story taught you anything? You are doomed to face the same thing that I have faced. Kobal you are just like me, the only things that you have of you mother are your silly thoughts and thinking all of these amazing things will happen, but it just won't! It will never happen! You are so damn love struck that you cannot see the path you are about to dread! You do not get it and will never get it! Just like your damn mother!" He was yelling and his red eyes glared and ate through me. He was out of breath by the time he gave this speech and I had nothing to say. I was done with him.

"I also inherited a heart, but you…. You are nothing but black inside… It is so nice to know that my father has so no love for me… Goodbye father." He then screamed out,

"That is not true!" I too got mad and we were at each other's throats at this point.

"Then say it! Say you love me if it is not true! Not once have I heard those words come out of your mouth!" It was quiet just us two glaring into each other's eyes. He finally took a deep breath but looked back to his plans as he said,

"Send in Linuin." I could not believe it. Not even when I tried to force it out of him he cannot say three simple words. Never once in my life have I heard him say that and now I probably will never. I backed away and said,

"Goodbye father." I turned harshly on my heel and slammed the door shut behind me. Linuin was down the hall and I muttered,

"He wants you in there." Linuin nodded and said a bit jokingly,

"Well what happened in there?" Now was not the time for jokes. This is when I really erupted and he was the cause to it. I grabbed a handful of his shirt and I slammed him into the wall as I yelled,

"None of you damn business! Now get your ass in there before I tear your throat out!" His eyes were extremely wide and once I released my grip he ran back into the headquarters. Once there was no more of him I ran to my father's room. There were some things I needed to get if I were to never see him again.

Once I entered his room there was no light at all. I chanted Brisingr to a few candles then made his way to his oversized closet. Once I opened the door all I saw was black even with the candles on. No bright colors perhaps a red tunic here and there, but other than that, black. Just like his soul.

I pushed my way through his dark clothes and reached toward the end of the closet where I saw a medium sized trunk. This is where he keeps all of her belongings. Castial's dresses and jewelry and many other belongings she left behind, but father was not man enough to get rid of them for good. Because he still loves her. I opened the trunk and saw the only thing that shed color in that room. Beautiful red, gold, purple, and blue dresses were folded neatly and silver jewelry lolled on top of the clothing, wanting to be seen. I must do this quickly so I closed it shut and grabbed the handles and surprisingly it was not as heavy as I imagined. Then again it must have been several years since I have seen this box. Once I was out of the closet I was about to shut the door, but feeling the cold chill on my torso reminded me I was still bare chested.

Well what would be the difference if I took one of his many black tunics? He will never know it. I ripped one off the hanger and swiftly put it on. Much better. Once my hands found those handles I was off and running out of the room. Still the halls were vacant and for me that was not a bad thing. I ran out of Gil'ead in the cold winter night, running with this stupid chest sewn to my hands, but as I left someone called my name in the distance.

Gilmor? Probably and in just a few seconds he turned up right in front my face. So many questions flew through my head, but one got spoken,

"Where did you take Aranel?" He nodded and said,

"I will take you to her. She is not far from here maybe a few miles, but not too bad…. You need any help with that?" He looked to the chest and I shook my head and said,

"No, it honestly is not that heavy and running only a few miles? No problem." He nodded and in a flash he was already meeting the trees in the dark forest. I followed after him and we ran under the pale full moon which guided us the whole way.

**A/N: Now I know it may have been a month since I updated, you can yell at min the review you are about to post and I will say I apologize greatly. But hey! This was pretty long chapter and I also have my next chapter almost done so it should be posted by tomorrow night. I make up well don't I? So please review, I am sorry again!**


	9. Her Love is The Sweetest Sin

Gilmor stopped us on top of a hill and in the valley ahead of us lies a small, charming cottage with smoke rising out of it's stout chimney.

"Well here we are." Gilmor said as we were only a few steps away from the door, and yet I wondered who was hospitalizing my Aranel.

"Gilmor, before we go in, I must ask… Who are these people?" Gilmor sighed and said,

"It's a long story but I will tell you he was a soldier and we fought in many battles together and he is a damn good friend. Alright? Anymore questions?" He was a little frustrated with me but I did not know why. When he touched the door knob he said softly,

"Now, brace yourself. He has three young ones running around." What! This was not part of the deal.

"Children?" I whispered back. Gilmor nodded. O Great! Children! Sorry to say I am not a huge admirer of children. They scream and cry and are so god damn annoying! Well I will have to make do for now. Maybe, whoever this man is, could tie a muzzle on their faces. Gilmor opened the door and once he did I saw the inside of their cottage which was terrifying. It was lovely and homey but once I saw those three running around they were like little demons dancing around a fire in hell. But then Aranel followed close behind them with a bright smile on her face as she shouted,

"Gildon come back here!" Oh no, she has fallen in love with the children! Well if she likes them then I will have to find a way to share some love with as well. Gilmor walked in and grabbed one of the devils and swung her around. The girl laughed in a shrill voice and then Gilmor brought her toward me. Even though I disliked children this young one was hard not to like. She had bright blue eyes and red hair. But she was no shade so do not think of my hair color when I say red. And her skin was pale but her cheeks were blazing red. And her smile was precious, but I still am not comfortable around children.

"This is Gail. Gail this is Kobal." Gilmor said and Gail's smile toned down to a shy smile, but then she raised her arms toward me and I stepped back,

"What? What does she want?" Gilmor laughed and said,

"Kobal, calm down. She just wants to be in your arms." Gilmor held her out as her pretty little green dress fanned out. But I panicked,

"What do I do?" Gilmor laughed even more as he placed this child in my arms and said,

"Just hold her Kobal! She won't eat you!" I doubt that. She had a light body and was warm like Aranel. She giggled and said,

"You are very quiet." Sorry I am not a screaming monster like you! But I rather to say that in a more sensitive way,

"Sorry I am not a screaming monster like you!" Well, not really. But she laughed again and said,

"You're funny! Almost as funny as Gilmor, but you are still too serious."

"That is because Gilmor is a fool… How old are you, Gail?" I realized that her vocabulary was too strong to be a three year old. She put up all her five fingers and said,

"I'm five. How old are you?" I felt like joking around a bit and said,

"I'm five too." She laughed again and said,

"No you're not! You're to big!" Just then I heard a screech come from behind me and it was a young boy sitting on top of my mother's trunk. He had dark brown hair and a small body of a two or three year old. I put Gail down and went to the boy and said,

"Um, little boy! Get off of that! It is an antique!" He just laughed and started bouncing up and down. What a fiend! I was ready to kick him right off of that thing! But someone grabbed him and said,

"Gildon play time is over, you should be getting to bed." And wouldn't you know it was Aranel. She was there for only about an hour and she is acting like a mother already. I looked at her and she looked so different. The scar was gone from her face and she was wearing a beautiful emerald dress instead of the clothes that she wore for two months. The dress was simple and trimmed with gold, but Aranel made it royalty. She smiled and said,

"Well how did everything go with you and your father?" I was so dazed by her beauty that it took me a few seconds to gather myself.

"Oh, um not well. Disastrous in any way possible." Aranel's smile was gone from her face and she said,

"What happened, Kobal? Wasn't he happy to see you?"

"Yes, overjoyed, he even hugged me. But once I said 'I love you' to him he never said I love you back. He turned away like I was a disgrace. I can't live like that anymore. I need to be with someone who loves me." She grabbed my face and said,

"And she's right here." She went on her tip toes as I reached down and kissed her softly but it was not long until the children yelled in unison,

"EW!" Aranel laughed and I could not help but laugh as well. Then a low and loud voice came out from the kitchen,

"What's all this noise? You all should be in bed!" A man came out of the kitchen and he was around his early forties. He had dark brown hair to his shoulders and a scruffy beard. He was tall maybe a few inches taller than me and was robust. The three children turned to him and just stared. The father sighed and said,

"What are you staring at me for? Go to bed!" The children laughed and ran into different parts of the house. Gail and Gildon ran upstairs while the older boy ran past the kitchen and into a room in the hallway. Once all the doors were shut the man turned to me and said,

"You must be Kobal." He reached out his hand as I grabbed it and we both gave out a manly handshake. Then he said,

"I am Aldran. And welcome to our home. You will have to forgive my wife for she has already fallen asleep. And I am about to do the same so I should proabably get to that before I end up on the floor. But you three are welcome to stay up as long as you like just don't wake us up... We shall wake you in the morning. Kobal, Aranel will show you where your room is. Goodnight to all." After all of that he almost ran upstairs. He was a nice man but yo could tell he was hard working and extremely tired.

"You must forgive him. He was at his shop all day. He will be in a lighter mood tomorrow." I was not really bothered by his attitude. I would be just like that if I had three children... even if I didnt have a job.

"No he's a nice man. I am sure his is tired... So Gilmor you are staying here as well?" He nodded and said,

"Just tonight. There is no way I am running all the way back to Gil'ead. So I will be sleeping on the couch." He then got a running start and flopped gracefully on the couch. I guess it was a signal he wanted us to leave so he could sleep. So I said,

"Well I am pretty beat too so, shall we?" I turned to Aranel, but she was already up the stairs. I chuckled and picked up the trunk as I chased her up the stairs. Then we came to the last door on the left of this strangely big cottage.

"This our room." Aranel said. _Our room_. Oh, Iiked the sound of that. As she opened the door she quietly chanted brisngr to the four candle in the room. I placed the tunk heavily on the floor as she said,

"You lugged that all the way from Gil'ead?" I looked up and nodded. God did dhe look beautiful. She looked so clean instead of all the dirt and dried blood that smeared over her pale body. No more ugly scars to hide her beauty all of that was gone. She was just like the first time I saw her struggling in those shoulders arms.

"Well what on earth did you do that for?" She woke me out of my daze and I said,

"It's for you. It was once my mother's but I figured since she is not around anymore this would do you good. Open it." She smiled and said,

"Kobal, I dont know what to say... Except thank you." I chuckled and said,

"Please, I am the one who should be thanking you for coming into my life." She smiled gracefully and kissed me on my neck softly and then went on her knees to open the chest. As soon as the chest creaked open she gasped,

"Oh, Kobal! I cannot except all of this!" I bent down beside her and wrapped myself around her as I said,

"Nonsence. These clothes have not been worn for years. Don't you think it is about time you share it's beauty along with yours?" She blushed and it was so refreshing to see that again. She pulled out a silver necklace and said,

"I cannot except this fine jewlery, though." I laughed and said,

"Aranel I know you want it! Please it is a gift from me to you. I mean honestly! What am I going to do with it?" She laughed and I have not heard that beautful sound for a while now. She explored throught the trunk giving lovely comments until she said,

"Kobal, what happened to your mother?" She was very sincere she even grabbed my hand. I slightly smiled and said,

"She left us. She didnt die, she just could not live with my father anymore ... and neither could I." She grabbed my hand even tighter as she said,

"Oh, Kobal I am so sorry." I shook my head and said,

"Don't be. She did the right thing... But one thing that scares me about my father is that I am exactly like him." Aranel shook her head violently and said,

"No, Kobal you are nothing like your father. You are not cruel or sadistic like your father. You have a heart and ..."

"That is the only thing I have inherited from my mother. I mean look at me Aranel! I am my father's legacy, and I don't have a choice. My mother was an elf, Aranel, and my father was a shade. They fell in love just like us, in a prison cell. And she left him. My father said I was about to face the same doom." She shook her head and said,

"I would never do that, Kobal. Never." I had to make sure of that so I said,

"Then will you love me forever? Will ... wait." I looked through the chest rapidly and went to her jewelry box that was filled with other jewelry like braceletts, earrings, and rings. I pulled it out and quickly shuffled through it and I found the perfect ring. It was nothing big, but like some other ones in there. It was a simple silver ring that looked like a plant vine that woul wrap around the base of her finger. Perfect for her. I held it up to her and her eyes sparkled at the sight of it. She was speechless and I hope that was a good thing.

"So, will you love me forever and never let go of that? I know it is a little early to be doing this, but you are so damn perfect, Aranel, and I don't want to lose you. We don't have to do anything fancy for this proposal isn't that fancy as well. I wouldn't even call it a proposal just a promise. Do you promise to be with me for the rest of our lives? And I promise, Aranel, I will make you safe no matter what is iin my way. Just, love me, I dont want to end up like my father who thinks love is a sin. And if that is so well then your love is the sweetest sin of them all. So please..." And she kissed me and that shut me up. I think that is what she was aiming at for I was ramping and a nervous mess. I wrapped my shaking hands around her and held her tight to me as she tangled her fingers through my messy hair. She then loosened her grip on me and said,

"Are you alright now?" I looked down at her and said,

"Depends on what your answer is." She took my hands and opened my right one which held the ring. She picked it up and placed it on her finger as she said,

"I think I am too young to have a wedding, but I promise that I will be in your life loving you with all my heart. I will never let what happened to your father happen to you. I love you." She kissed me lightly on the lips and I wanted much more, but her focus led to the window as she said,

"Look, Kobal! It's snowing!" We both ran to the window. I loved the snow. It is the most beautiful thing that weather can produce. So we watched as the snow danced in the sky as Aranel's ring glisten in the bright moon beam.

**A/N: Another chapter complete! Now I was disappointed with the number of reviews I got last time so if you are reading guys please review. Now I got a tip from a reviewer on my last chapter saying I should do a chapter (or a few) in Aranel's POV. I was actually thinking about that and I would be happy to do one. So you may end up in Aranel's POV for the next chapter, but it will not be from the beginning of the story where she enters Gil'ead it would be from where we left off. So please review and tell me what you think of this idea. Seriously, review i dont just want one or two opinions on this topic.**


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